Critic Reviews

Kolibri is a Frankenstein’s monsters of sorts; an experience cobbled together from an unapologetic mishmash of genres and ideas that all cumulate into an experience best described as offbeat. It’s a game designed by outside the box thinking that defies the usual mechanics we have long accepted to be safe, and, instead, tries to be something familiarly different. The concept it champions is brave and, if you take the time to look beneath the surface, could have easily ended up as top-heavy gaming, an overloaded pallet of content bursting at the seams.

Good 32X games are rare, so starved 32X owners will want to snap this one up. It has stunning visuals and pretty good sound and lot's of good shooting action. On the downside, it's quite short and bosses are totally absent. But it's by far the best shooter on the 32X and one of it's 3 best games. Give it an extra 5 points if you were a big Ecco fan.

If you like games that involve a little bit of thinking outside the box (this isn't your standard game, that's for certain), Kolibri is a neat little anomaly in an otherwise explosion-addicted industry, no matter how confusing it may initially be to beginners. It could even be considered a precursor to further experimentation in what I like to call "natural gaming"; that is, using the consciousness of the world to bring enjoyment in a digital world. Games like Flower owe much to the groundbreaking stature of games like this. Kolibri was, regrettably, hidden from much of the public because of its imprisonment to the Sega 32X, but more people should really have the opportunity to play this forgotten gem.

Even though it's easy and some times slow paced, I can see the hardcore shooter fans enjoying this, not as much as Thunder Force 3, but enjoying it nonetheless. I also see anyone who enjoys classic games playing through this title. This game puts almost every thing else on the 32X to shame; it is almost the only unique experience on the entire system and one of the only games on the system where the developer even gave full effort to the doomed out of the gate system.

If for no other reason than its unique (some might say preposterous) premise alone, Kolibri is worth a look. Just don't surprise yourself if that "look" is sustained a little bit longer than you had planned as you gaze upon this, the most beautiful pre-Saturn game available on a Sega system.

The first things that impressed me about the game were the clean graphics, the serene music and the calm atmosphere that surround this game. It reminded me of Ecco the Dolphin though it differs quite a bit (it's a shooter). Although the enemies and levels are unique (bullfrogs, bees, waterfalls, etc.), you can easily become frustrated. Once you continue after being killed, you reappear as a one-hit wonder and quickly get killed again. What's that all about?

Novotrade are barely known in the gaming world nowadays. The company itself may not be known but its classic game Ecco the Dolphin probably is. Another game by Novotrade that didn’t become as popular as the Ecco series was Kolibri a game similar to Ecco in many ways but different in others. It was only released on the Sega 32X, the failed console that Sega probably don’t want to hear about ever again. It was released in 1995 which was when the gaming world was slowly changing from 16-bit consoles to 32-bit consoles.

The game controls well, is interesting for a bit and is very easy on the eyes. Unfortunately, there isn't much here that couldn't have been done on a Genesis. After a few plays, it gets very monotonous. It's a game that younger players may enjoy, but the rest are likely to think that Kolibri is for the birds.

Kolibri is simply too unique to write off completely. Even if the gameplay dynamics seem broken in areas, it's a must play title. You can tell the marketing team tried desperately to sell this game with lines on the back of the box like "intoxicating aerial acrobatics" and "panoramic menagerie of colors." It's just a little above average, yet you need this game in your collection.

Kolibri isn't awful, just average. You'd expect more the 32X - something more along the lines of Gradius or R-Type. Maybe Sega should've given this bird some armor or jet-propelled wings. As it stands, Kolibri couldn't take on Tweety Bird.

Kolibri is armed with a wide selection of weapons including burning rings, heat-seeking lasers, and pea-shots that explode into fireworks. But while these weapons may look great, they are seriously weak considering every foe can sustain numerous hits. In fact, some creatures appear completely unfazed. Floating bubbles house weapons and health, but their tiny icons are hard to discern. Each stage is introduced with a password, and the odd stage titles include "Deep Seeding", "Dark Cavity", "Penetration", "Eruption", and last but not least - "New Infection". Yeah, these programmers were some really lonely guys! Kolibri is only mildly fun with one player, and the two-player co-op is completely worthless. My friends hated this game, even calling it a "piece of [expletive]". Maybe so, but there aren't many original games like Kolibri for the 32X, and if you have a soft spot for the Ecco series, your reaction might be a little less visceral.